You may have heard about the gut microbiome and its impact on a person’s overall health and well-being. It turns out the same may be true for the semen microbiome. Research from the UCLA Department of Urology shows that the semen microbiome, especially microorganisms such as Lactobacilli, can affect male fertility by affecting sperm motility, opening new avenues for understanding and treating male infertility.
The semen microbiome may play a crucial role in influencing sperm parameters and improving male fertility, according to researchers in the UCLA Department of Urology. Given that recent studies have highlighted the importance of the microbiome to overall human health, researchers investigated the semen microbiome to understand its potential impact on male infertility.
Exploring the functions of these microorganisms in semen has the potential to pave the way for the development of treatments to correct any problems with sperm parameters.
Effect of Lactobacilli on Sperm Motility
Research has found that a specific type of microorganism, Lactobacillus iners, may have a direct negative impact on male fertility. Researchers found that men with more of this microbe were more likely to have sperm motility problems. Previous studies have found that Lactobacillus iners preferentially produces L-lactic acid, which may lead to a local pro-inflammatory environment that adversely affects sperm motility.
The study's authors note that existing research has hinted at a link between this microbe and fertility, but most of the literature relates to the vaginal microbiome and female factors. This is the first study to report an inverse association between this microbe and male factor fertility.
Diversity of semen microbiota and its impact
The researchers also found that three bacteria from the Pseudomonas group were present in both patients with normal and abnormal sperm concentrations. Microorganisms called Pseudomonas fluorescens and Pseudomonas stutzeri were more common in patients with abnormal sperm concentrations, while Pseudomonas putida was less common in samples with abnormal sperm concentrations.
However, the findings suggest that not every member of the same closely related group affects fertility in the same way, either positively or negatively. In other words, even closely related microbes don't always have the same direct relationship with fertility.
Conclusions and future research directions
"There is still much to explore about the microbiome and its relationship to male infertility," said lead author Vadim Osadchiy, a UCLA urology resident. "However, these findings provide valuable insights that could steer us in the right direction to better understand this correlation." Our study is consistent with evidence from smaller studies and will pave the way for more comprehensive future investigations to unravel the complex relationship between the semen microbiome and fertility."
Compiled source: ScitechDaily